Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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A great Shakespearean actor

Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand

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Ira’s Shakespeare Dream by Glenda Armand and illustrated by Floyd Cooper was the right book at the right time. Had I read it any other time than recently in APril 2024, I don’t think it would have hit me the same. I had just read a book that had put all the well-known people in the theme, and I needed something that would give me the unknown. Read via an online reader copy and currently available, Armand takes a probably mostly unknown actor of color […]

A Sweet Spin on Shakespeare

Midsummer's Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca

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I am a regular listener of the podcast The Worst Bestsellers. While the hosts often read and make gentle fun of some very popular books, they also recommend books to read instead of the bestseller. This book was recommended and I really enjoyed it. Midsummer’s Mayhem is a cute confection of a book for readers ages 8-12 and loosely follows the plot of a Midsummer Night’s Dream. Mimi Jackson is 11, living with her two older sisters and one older brother. One day, a new […]

Of Mice and Metaphors

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

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In a small Warwickshire village, an eleven year old succumbs to the plague. The year is 1596; the boy’s name is Hamnet. His father, who remains nameless throughout the book, goes on to write a famous play about a young Danish prince, while his mother stays behind with the boy’s sisters, trying to pick up the pieces of their life.  Hamnet is about a side of Shakespeare we rarely get a glimpse of, mostly because not a lot is known about it save for a […]

Witchy ways

Witch Poems by Daisy Wallace

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If this book has not at least been challenged at least once, I would be amazed. Witch Poems edited by Daisy Wallace includes some fantastic poems. However, while this is a great collection of poetry about witches and spooky fun (and not so much fun), it can be dated with language and imagery. Trina Schart Hyman had a style that when you saw it, you knew it was them. They had diverse characters before diverseness was prominent in children’s books. Yet, there are some stereotypes […]

“When did we become such terrible people?””Maybe we’ve always been terrible.”

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

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Other nights, when he thought I was already dreaming, he slid out of bed, took his coat and shoes, and disappeared into the dark outside. I never asked where he went, worried he wouldn’t ask me to follow. ― M.L. Rio, If We Were Villains “Do you blame Shakespeare for any of it?” The question is so unlikely, so nonsensical coming from such a sensible man, that I can’t suppress a smile. “I blame him for all of it.”― M.L. Rio, If We Were Villains […]

Drama Queen

Antony & Cleopatra by William Shakespeare

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Ah, Shakespeare- takes me right back to high school English class! (Truthfully though: I hadn’t read this play nor seen it performed, but the general strokes of the story were familiar.) Ready? Here goes: Marc Antony, the great Roman general, is uneasily sharing power with Octavius, Julius Ceaser’s nephew, and a third general, Lepidius. Antony has come to Egypt as part of the triumvirate’s previous battles against outside enemies and fallen in love with the seductive Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra. Now that the outside enemies have […]



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